Notes on a Scandal
by jazzywazzy08
Summary: Schoolteacher Niklaus Mikaelson has led a solitary life until Stefan Salvatore, the new history teacher at Mystic Falls High School, befriends him and takes him on as a confidante. But as their relationship develops, so does another as Stefan an illicit begins an affair with an underage student, Bonnie Bennett.
1. Foreward

**Title:** Notes on a Scandal

**Rating: **M

**Genre:** AU All Human

**Pairing(s):** Bonnie/Stefan, Klaus/Stefan, Bonnie/Klaus, Bonnie/Stefan/Klaus, Stefan/Katherine, Caroline/Matt, Tyler/Vicki, ect.

**Summary: **Schoolteacher Niklaus Mikaelson has led a solitary life until Stefan Salvatore, the new history teacher at Mystic Falls High School, befriends him and takes him on as a confidante. But as their relationship develops, so does another as Stefan an illicit begins an affair with an underage student, Bonnie Bennett. When the affair is discovered Klaus decides to write an account of the events in his friend's defense— through which it is revealed that his intentions with this "friend" go well beyond platonic friendship. Things become further complicated when Klaus' obsession extends to Bonnie during Stefan's trial.

**Warnings:** Infidelity, Sexual Content, Non-Canon, Polyamourous Relationships, OOC Behavior, etc.

_**Author's Note: So I started this fic for two reason the main one being that I need help and the second being I wanted to do a Klefonnie story in a different sort of setting. I am taking a bit of a risk with this, but I am trusting that if not open to the idea at the very least you all will give me honest feedback and also I can always delete this and pretend this never happened if necessary. Okay so this is inspired by both the book What Was She Thinking?: Notes on a Scandal and the movie adaption of the book which was titled simply, Notes on a Scandal. However, I am taking the idea toward different territory. I will try to keep everyone in character for the most part, but I can't make any promises. So here is how this will go, the start of this will be in Klaus' POV, a first person (if I can pull it off), and then it will go into third person as the story goes along. If you like this and I continue there will be breaks in which we will see Klaus' POV again as he writes his account of events and it will jump into present which is amidst Stefan's trial. I have never been so nervous about a fic in my life and so I am just going to bite the bullet and get this over with. I will be posting the first part starting with the Foreword which is in Klaus's POV and then depending on the reception I will post the first chapter which is in third person. I am currently at work on The Summoning and so I didn't edit. Anyway please give me feedback or I will curl up in a ball and eat cookie do and cry (side note: I will likely be doing this sans the crying whether you give feedback or not). Here goes nothing! Happy reading!**_

**Foreword**

"_We are bound by the secrets we share." ― Zoë Heller, What Was She Thinking? [Notes on a Scandal]_

_**Mystic Falls, Virginia **_

_**March 1, 2010**_

In spite of the trial beginning today, Stefan saw fit to talk about the first time that he kissed the Bennett girl, last night at dinner. I had of course, heard the story before, more than once. Sometimes prompted and sometimes not. However, this time around, a new detail slipped from Stefan's lips.

When it became clear that in spite of my lack of response the story would continue, I began to ask questions. I happened to ask him if there was anything about the experience that surprised him. He took this question into consideration for some time. Thinking on it for some time and closing his eyes in the most irritating of ways as if he were reliving the experience over and over again.

The answer that he came up with was one that had not expected. The smell and the feel of the whole thing, in particular the smell of the Bennett girl and the feel of her lips. Her being a teenager, and a cheerleader besides, he had expected her to spell of something both disgustingly flowery and overwhelming in equal parts. He expected her lips to feel sticky with lip gloss and perhaps taste of something fruity like cherries, or worse strawberries.

_When it happened, it was a very surreal moment. If not for the scents, the feel, the taste; I would have been able to convince myself later that it had not happened to me but someone else. She smelled soap and vanilla, her scent was soft and warm. Her lips were soft as well, and gentle. I have never felt such warmth and gentility since my mother passed away after her illness. I thought such things were lost to the world…_

Every night this week since we moved into his old family boarding house Stefan has talked of to me of her. He sits in an old worn chair that used to be his mothers and he speaks in a low voice as if he is afraid that someone might hear, though as his brother bought their childhood home for his own family some time ago, and the boarding house is vacant, there is no one left to hear.

Often the things he says are extremely personal in nature, very in depth, and detailed. If not for how closed mouth he has been with the reporters I would guess that he could not speak of the Bennett girl without falling into some ridiculously worshipful exaggerated diatribe.

From what I have discovered over the eighteen months in which I have known him, I can say very plainly that Stefan is a brooder. He goes over his own behavior again and again, particularly things that others might consider to be a sin, in incredible detail. Dissecting his own actions, his brows knitted together and his mind consumed with guilt whether or not he feels that his actions are wrong.

I am only one who he ever speaks with in this way, outside of himself and the girl. We don't have secrets, Stefan and I.

_When I first saw her undress, do you know what I thought of Nik? It was the oddest thing, but I thought of being invited into someone's home. It was as if I was a guest being welcomed with open arms. And I made it my own home. Set up myself there. But shelves in her mind to stack my secrets upon. Placed my dreams in a drawer in the valley of her breast. Locked my soul in a room between her legs. It never occurred to me that she was too young to offer me shelter, it still does not occur to me in fact…_

The house metaphor is one that pops up often. The trouble with Stefan being a teacher of literature is that his of the mind that everything that leaves his mouth must sound poetic. Not matter how many odes her sings of the girl's hair or sonnets her recites about her eyes, I still often wonder at the fact that he does not know how very ridiculous that he sounds. Still I kept giving him cues and asking questions. "When you were kissing her for the first time were you nervous?"

_Not exactly. As I said before it was a very surreal moment. But there were things about the exchange that kept me rooted firmly in reality. I was calm, alarmingly so. It was because she was so gentle I think, that made me calm. There was no pressure, no tongue, just the soft press of her lips to mine and then she lingered. She lingered so long that relaxed too much into it, and I dropped my car keys. I've never heard anything so loud in my life as those keys hitting the ground. Then I ran, of course. I wasn't nervous no….not during….but afterward…afterward... By the time I made it to my car I was trembling. Nervous and scared because I knew…I knew it would happen again._

I never respond. I keep my face impartial. Make sure that I don't judge. Not that it would matter if I did. Stefan simply wants someone to listen to him. Someone who will not condemn him or twist his words in the way they have been doing in all of the papers.

However, as I said before Stefan has always been this way with me. I could not tell you why but from the day that we met he has been rather comfortable with tossing out intimate truths about himself and his life. He always been very frank with me, and though I do not understand it, I am flattered by it. It was the frankness and the intimacy that he shared with the girl that was his undoing.

At the moment I am taking my seat in the court room on the side of the defendant. It is the first day of Stefan's trial and the reporters that have been slandering him are present as well as most of the small unremarkable Virginian town.

I am the only one sitting on Stefan's side of the room outside of Alexia Branson, whom considers herself to be a friend of his. We are the only ones that had stood by him in this, me going as far as to give up my apartment to help him pay his lawyer's fees. Then later I moved into the boarding house after his wife Katherine kicked him out of his home (understandable given the situation) so that he would not be alone.

Much of the town believes that since I have so clearly taken Stefan's side on things that I have some sordid secret of my own. My publically siding with Stefan has left me no choice but to resign from my own position as art teacher at the same school that forced Stefan's resignation one the unfortunate business with the Bennett girl surfaced. I do not mind as I abhor teenagers and meant to strike out on my own with my art just the same.

Alexia taps me on the shoulder and asks after Stefan's well-being. I lie and tell her that he is fine, though I am not sure what sort of answer that she expects under the circumstances. She nods and sits back in her seat just behind me, without a further word.

In truth Stefan has not been sleeping well at night. And often he stays up when he says that he is sleep(though he slept well enough last night after I took the liberty of scenting his pillow with vanilla, a necessary evil as he had to be well rested before the trial even if I had to pay a homage to the girl to get it done). I can sometimes hear the scratching of pen across paper and his voice talking to himself through the walls from my own room next door to his. He writes to the Bennett girl, night after night. Letters that he sneaks out in the early hours of the morning and sticks underneath the windshield wiper of her car. He never signs them as if that will reduce suspicion if someone were to see them there, but I suspect it is only due to the neglect and self-absorbedness of the girl's parents (the same neglectful behavior that allowed the affair to take place without their knowledge for so many months) that he has not yet been found out. The girl never writes back to him.

Still Stefan has taken to planning out their future together. I have only been inside of his room a handful of times, and when I entered the first I made a disturbing discovery. There are lined pieces of paper that he has tapped to his wall, marked with permanent marker and outlining the dates from the moment he met the girl to present and then blank pages with only lines and dashes as if he hopes to one day fill them with more moments in their unfortunate courtship. No, Stefan is not alright, but how do I explain all that is wrong in a courtroom full of people who wish to have his head?

This is not my story. But as I am the one telling it and I am the involved in some of the events I am going to describe, I suppose introductions are an order. My name is Niklaus Mikaelson, but you may call me Klaus. (At times my sister, Rebekah and Stefan refer to me as Nik but I tolerate that only because I care for them more than most). Until February, I had been living in this small Virginian town at my family's estate known to most a Mikaelson Manor. Before I resigned I was an art teacher at Mystic Falls High School for ten years. I met Stefan Salvatore, eighteen months ago, he was the first friend I had had in fifteen years. He is a twenty-five year old English teacher charged with indecent assault on a minor after being discovered have a sexual affair with one of his students-who was sixteen years old at the time the affair started.

The town has been talking of little else since the affair first came to light. It has received a certain degree of media coverage as well. The reporters use words like "unhealthy" and "monster", things of that nature to describe Stefan, though in reality the only thing that is unhealthy about him is the degree to which he martyrs himself.

They also find some joy in the fact that his wife Katherine Petrova (she never took on his last name), who is ten years his senior, was his own professor at one point in time when they met, as she teaches a course at Whitmore College, Human Sexuality of all things. They speak of his relationship with Katherine as if it were some precursor to the incident with the Bennett girl. Some sign of his deviance.

I used to take the media much more seriously before discovering that reporters and journalist are all idiots, at least speaking of the majority of them. That is why I have taken it upon myself to write a more accurate account of things. As Stefan's confidant and caretaker, there is no one more suitable than I to take on the task.

Stefan is unaware of my plans, he has enough to worry about so I will keep him in the dark about things for now. He will appreciate I am sure when it is all said and done. I have as I said drawn some media attention myself so this will be for my sake as well as his, and in some ways it will even be for the sake of the girl.

I will be the first to admit that Stefan's account of things is not the most reliable. Though he shoulders all of the responsibility so married is he to his guilt, at the same time he has the irritating habit of romanticizing the relationship. As of late his remorse stems for the fact that the girl is being scrutinized and must be put through the process of his trial and the town being privy to her personal information through him. Other than that, his own actions do not seem to bother him all that much. But as confused and muddled as Stefan's recollection of their "love" is, he is honest to the best of his abilities and so I can say that as far as he knows he is telling the truth about things.

Almost as I write this the girl and her parents walk into the courtroom. Her mother and father look down as if they are the ones on trial and in a way they are. They have been in the process of getting a divorce for some time or so Stefan tells me the girl told him. The father is often out of town and the mother is currently staying with her own mother in a separate home and so the girl was often left alone in the house she shared with her father. A house that Stefan himself has become extremely familiar with.

The parents sit on the prosecutor's side and the girl walks behind them. I am surprised to see her head is held high and there is a look of determination on her face that is almost unnerving. The Forbes girl stands next to her, her hand on the girl's shoulder. They have been friends for some time Stefan told me once. Funny I have never seen them together until this moment. The Bennett girl, whenever I chanced to glance in her direction long enough to pay attention to whom I was looking at, has always been alone.

The girl surprises me further as she does not follow her parents. Instead she takes her seat on Stefan's side next to me (which means I will soon have to stop writing). Still I look at her out of the corner of my eye as her friend hesitates before sitting with her.

I have seen her before as I said, but I have never really looked. I see some of it as she looks towards the doors across the room that open to allow Stefan and his lawyer to enter, the beauty that Stefan so often speaks of. She is not as attractive as Stefan (not that I find him to be attractive, only beautiful in the way that most aesthetically pleasing things are) though their eyes are a similar green. But I can see that she is no wanting as far as looks, though her mouth slightly crooked and nose is much too small and makes me thing of some sort of fey creature.

I glance at her parents and find that though her mother is glaring and her father is rather stiff neither of them have come to fetch their daughter. It is clear whose side the Bennett girl is on in this and the whispers coming from the townspeople around us who were shouting about her stolen innocence and labeling her tainted only days before are very telling.

Stefan looks put together in every sense of the word even with the ongoing whispers around the room. I would credit his suddenly looking much less haggard than he has since the ordeal began to the new suit I took the liberty of purchasing for him, for the purposes of the trial and the fact that I forced him to shave this morning, but it is clear what has lifted his spirits enough for him to appear human rather than stray animal. His eyes become bright and alive as he sees the Bennett girl as if she has been the one at his side these weeks and not I. As Stefan takes his seat he looks right at the girl and smiles. It is a rather idiotic thing to do considering what he is on trial for but I resist the urge to roll my eyes at him, though it is nice to see him smile.

The Bennett girl smiles in return though she is fidgeting with her hands in a way that makes me think of swatting her as if she were a fly. Stefan needs her calmness at the moment, she is usually a very put together brave faced girl when she is being swarmed by reporters, walking pass them calmly without comment.

I suppose I expected her to be shielded by her parents on the prosecutor's side of the room but she has surprised more than me by taking Stefan's side so her action might very well be what is responsible for her nerves. The Forbes girl is of no help, her eyes are darting around the room quickly and she looks only seconds away from leaving the Bennett girl's side. Alexia touches the girl's shoulder from behind and Bennett jumps and begins to chew on her bottom lip.

Stefan turns slightly and frowns at the Bennett girl sympathetically. He gives me the most pleading look I have ever seen before his lawyer forces him to turn around again and whispers an admonishing in his ear. I understand Stefan is being rather stupid but really the man needn't be so close in order to tell him so.

I glance down at the Bennett girl as she begins to tap her heeled feet against the floor.

Sighing I place my free hand over hers to stop her movements, but she sees it as a gesture of comfort. She freezes altogether, except her both of her hands now clutch one of mine. She smiles at me as she glances over, mimics my posture her body now confident and erect. I catch the soft scent of vanilla and frown. She squeezes my hand before letting it go and then she pulls something out of the pocket of the pencil skirt she is wearing. A letter, folded but I can still see the faint outlines of Stefan's handwriting. She places the small paper in between her hands, folds her hands together, places them in her lap, and stares at Stefan's back as the judge enters the room.

"He looks good," she leans over and whispers to me her eyes still forward, "He hasn't been sleeping I can tell but you've taken good care of him. He said you would. Thank you, Mr. Mikaelson."

She leans back over toward the Forbes girl and whispers something that seems to calm her." Inexplicably something shifts and she stops being the Bennett girl in my mind and I suddenly think of her as Bonnie. Perhaps I could talk to her as I talk to Stefan, it will be good for her to tell her side of things, make my account more accurate. It does Stefan good I think, talking to me. And perhaps I will finally understand why it is that he chose her.

_**End Notes: So there is the introduction of sorts. Remember the whole story will not be in Klaus' POV, it is actually in third person with him interjecting a little in between. I actually hate writing in first person but the work which I am drawing inspiration from is completely in first person. Anyway let me know if you want this continued. **_


	2. One

**Title:** Notes on a Scandal

**Rating: **M

**Genre:** AU All Human

**Pairing(s):** Bonnie/Stefan, Klaus/Stefan, Bonnie/Klaus, Bonnie/Stefan/Klaus, Stefan/Katherine, Caroline/Matt, Tyler/Vicki, ect.

**Summary: **Schoolteacher Niklaus Mikaelson has led a solitary life until Stefan Salvatore, the new English teacher at Mystic Falls High School, befriends him and takes him on as a confidante. But as their relationship develops, so does another as Stefan an illicit begins an affair with an underage student, Bonnie Bennett. When the affair is discovered Klaus decides to write an account of the events in his friend's defense— through which it is revealed that his intentions with this "friend" go well beyond platonic friendship. Things become further complicated when Klaus' obsession extends to Bonnie during Stefan's trial.

**Warnings:** Infidelity, Sexual Content, Non-Canon, Polyamourous Relationships, OOC Behavior, etc.

_**Author's Note: Okay so to address some of the things in the reviews, I did research before I began this fic, and there are a separate set of laws for Virginia and West Virginia regarding the matter this story is discussing. The laws are dissected into parts, basically there is a whole other set of laws regarding if an adult is in a position of power over the child, and the age of consent is lowered in that case. The issue here is that Stefan is an educator, and therefor was in a position of power over Bonnie when they began their affair. Also I think that people are disregarding Stefan's POV because Klaus is saying that they should but you have to consider the fact that this is Klaus, a different Klaus, but still Klaus and so he is not necessarily reliable either. Just like he claims that Stefan's feelings for Bonnie is skewing Stefan's view of the situation, Klaus' feelings for Stefan are skewing his view of the situation. I tried to make this clear. But Stefan is not delusional and you are seeing the view of the relationship from Klaus' eyes but he is not privy to everything and he is not a part of their relationship yet so that should put his reliability as a narrator in question from the very beginning. My only advice about this is to take what Klaus' says with a grain of salt. Anyway, this part is in third person and then I will be posting another snippet in Klaus' POV. I am not entirely sure that I am happy with this. I was trying to set things up a bit and I am not sure how I did. I am really sick right now and it is the middle of the night here and so I am sure the grammar and things on this are atrocious since I did not edit but oh well. Please tell me what you guys think. I appreciate the feedback I have gotten so far. So thank you and happy reading!**_

**One**

"_Things that are truly innocent don't need to be labelled as such." _

― Zoë Heller, What Was She Thinking? [Notes on a Scandal]

_**Mystic Falls, Virginia**_

_**November, 2008**_

The first time that Stefan Salvatore saw Bonnie Bennett on a warm autumn day when the leaves had just begun to fall from the trees. It was the first day he was to teach at Mystic Falls High School. His wife Katherine Petrova was friends with school's principle and acquired the position for Stefan when the old English teacher decided to go into retirement.

In truth, at the time, Stefan had been attempting to write a book. However, Katherine had been firmly of the mind that he could do his "scribbling" in his down time. So when the job came he had no real choice but to take the opportunity.

The first day that he was to teach, Stefan had arrived at the school with a trunk full of books and what little excitement he had managed to scare up at the thought of teaching.

As he pulled into the faculty lot, his eyes roamed over the students that passed. He was slightly intimidated. It was not so long ago that he was their age. That he had been thinking the way that they thought, and so he knew how difficult these kids could make his life if they so wanted to.

As he got out of his car and walked around to his trunk and opened it, he whistled a tune that he had her his mother hum once when he was very long. Katherine didn't like the whistling, and if he day didn't get any better, at the very least he had managed to whistle without getting shot down by some snide remark.

He took his time stacking all of the books just so. Different reading material for the different classes and grades he would be teaching. He knew that there was an easier way that it could be done. Or that he could even wait to bring each book in right when they would be reading it, but Stefan liked to have hard copies of things. He liked the feel of the books in his hands. He liked the written word to be a tangible thing. Something that no one around him had ever seemed to understand.

He managed to stack his book just so, shoulder his messenger's bag, and close the trunk of the car without incident. However, as he rounded the vehicle and stepped onto the sidewalk, one of the students knocked into him as they passed and sent his stack of books toppling over onto the ground.

The person didn't even stop to give Stefan a second glance and he frowned as he knelt down to pick up the books. People continued to walk around him and it did absolutely nothing to reassure Stefan about his choice to take the position at the school.

Then suddenly he was hit very hard with the scent of vanilla as a small brown hand reached out picked up one of the books that he had been reaching for. When he looked up at the hands occupant that was when their eyes met for the first time.

Much later Stefan would describe the experience as looking into a bright light and seeing an angel once the light cleared. She was beautiful in a nontraditional way. There was something more about her. Beyond the heart shape of her face. Beyond the slightly crooked mouth. Beyond the dark curly hair. Beyond the bright smile. Something more that drew him in and made him forget where he was and why he was there.

"You must be the new Lit teacher," she had said, as she helped him restack his books, "No one else would have this good of taste books and bother to carry them around on top of it."

Stefan has smiled as he stood with his books in hand. "I had hoped I wouldn't be so obvious," he said, "But clearly I've failed."

"You do look young enough to pass for a student if that makes you feel any better," she said, "And you're not too bad on the eyes so the girl's will go easy on you least." She took half of the stack of books from his hands and turned toward the school, the skirt of her midnight blue dress flying up slightly as she did so. "You got a name?" She asked.

Stefan cleared his throat as he began to walk in step with her. "Stefan Salvatore," he replied.

"Mr. Salvatore to me," she said. That was it then, she was a student. Off limits. Even more off limits than she already was given the fact that he was married. "My name is Bonnie Bennett," she smiled, "I'm probably the nicest person that you will meet all day."

"I don't doubt that," Stefan said as he glanced over at her. She was dangerous. He was becoming too comfortable with her already. Too comfortable with the fact that he wanted her as well. Because that was what this was. He was familiar with desire. He read about it. Had written about it. Had felt it. Therefore he also knew how to tamper it down. How to brush it aside.

"What room do they have you imprisoned in?" Bonnie asked, breaking into his thoughts.

As she gave him a once over, he felt good about his choice to dress casually. Jeans, button down black shirt, boots, and leather jacket. Then he frowned at the thought of himself silently seeking her approval.

Things weren't going the greatest with him and his wife but that didn't give him an excuse to covet a student. But he had never been so taken with someone so quickly, not even the woman that he had married.

"Two twenty five," Stefan answered, once he came out of his own head long enough to remember that she had asked him a question.

"I should probably give you some tips since it is your first day," Bonnie said, as they entered the school.

People seemed to notice her immediately. Waving and smiling in greeting. She was popular that didn't surprise him. She had an easy way about her. She seemed open and approachable.

"Sorry," she said, once they had cleared the crowd, "Comes with the whole cheerleading thing."

Stefan coughed, as the sudden image of her in a cheerleading uniform appeared in his mind's eye. "You were saying something about tips," he said, trying to change the subject.

"Right," she giggled, "Well first never expect anyone to actually read anything you assign them. That way you can be pleasantly surprised when they do."

"Noted," Stefan laughing a little, his nervousness from before having ebbed some.

"Don't let them intimidate you or they'll eat you alive," Bonnie continued, "If you eat lunch hear and don't bring anything from home then you should always steer clear of the meatloaf. It never ends well."

"No meatloaf," Stefan nodded, as they stopped in front of the classroom that Stefan was meant to make use of, "Got it."

Bonnie opened the door and the two walked inside.

"Any other gems?" Stefan asked as he set down the stack of books in his hands on the desk in the front of the room.

Bonnie nodded. "Just a few," she said, as she placed her own stack of books on the desk stop. She adjusted the black cardigan she was wearing as she stood upright. "Never let anyone insult your taste in literature," she said, "And if you are looking to make friends among the staff you should maybe….try Mr. Mikaelson. He's a bit prickly around the edges but….he's lonely, so even if he's an asshole at first, he likely won't turn you away. Besides, for some reason, the students like him so they'll like you by extension."

"Am I supposed to give you a detention or something for calling a fellow teacher an asshole?" Stefan asked.

Bonnie grinned as she began to back out of the room. "Maybe," she said, "But I was nice to you so you should left me off easy. Unless it's detention with you of course. We could discuss Nabokov and his obsession with ephebophilia."

Stefan frowned and cleared his throat. "I'll let you off," he said, "This time."

"Thank you, Mr. Salvatore," Bonnie smiled, as she tugged on the straps of the backpack he hadn't noticed she was wearing until that moment, "And good luck today."

"Luck is believing you're lucky," Stefan responded.

Bonnie laughed. "_A Streetcar Named Desire_," she said, "Tennessee Williams. Right?" Stefan nodded and she could tell that he was surprised that she was familiar with the play. "I knew that I would like you," she nodded, to herself, before looked back up at him, "You'll be great."

Stefan watched her walk away and as the door shut behind her he was simultaneously relieved and disappointed all at once.

**:::**

Stefan did not have the privilege of meeting Mr. Mikaelson until lunch time came and he found himself in the teacher's lounge being introduced to the rest of the faculty by the principle.

He had had three classes by then. One of which, Bonnie was in and they had all gone surprisingly smoothly. Though, he was sure that his favoritism toward Bonnie was showing already. He would have to get himself under control he knew. But as it was not something he normally had a problem with, he wasn't sure how to go about solving the issue.

Mikaelson was sitting at the table closest to the windows. His head down, sketching some of the landscape on the school grounds. In spite of Bonnie's warning he seems to be the only real prospect as far as friendly faculty goes. The only other options are women who eye Stefan hungrily in a way that makes him uncomfortable and Alaric Saltzman.

Before Stefan had even entered the room, Alaric the first voice that he had heard, laughing too loud at an inappropriate joke that he had made that was not all that funny. He tried to ingratiate himself to Stefan right of, but there was something about him that was off putting that Stefan could not put his finger one.

So after the principal had made his introductions, Stefan had walked over to Mr. Mikaelson, prepared to introduce himself.

Stefan stood in front of the table in which he sat and smiled down at him. "May I sit down?" He asked.

Stefan was not used to being rejected. In general he was a well-liked by everyone he came across. So he was a put out when he was met with silence. He was about to turn and leave when the man finally spoke, though he still didn't look up from what he was doing.

"You have an ass," the man said, "And there is a chair there and so I suppose that you may."

Stefan had laughed, and sat down anyway. "My name is Stefan Salvatore," he said, as he settled in his seat, "I am the new English teacher."

"I'm not deaf," Mr. Mikaelson commented, "I heard you being introduced just now."

Stefan could understand how Bonnie could label the man as an asshole. He was almost startled when the man finally looked up at him and gave him a rather assessing look. "My name is Niklaus Mikaelson," he said, after a moment, "You may decipher for yourself what you wish to call me but most around her call me Klaus outside of the students. I should warn you, if you plan to align yourself with me, I am not a well-liked man. You would do well to befriend another member of the faculty."

Stefan stared down at the lunch he had packed for a moment before he looked up again. "I have it on good authority that you are the one to befriend," he said, "Even if you do come off as an asshole."

There was a smirk, following by an expression that Stefan could not read, before the man began to continue his sketching. "I teach art," he said, "Most creative minds are known to be temperamental. As one who teacher literature I am sure that you are aware of that." Stefan didn't respond as he took his turkey sandwich from his brown paper bag. "Are you liking the position so far?" Klaus asked.

Stefan shrugged. "I am not sure," he said, "It's alright but not what I would like to be doing. I'm only here because my wife wants me to be. She got me the position because she got tired of me trying and failing to write a book. She doesn't understand that these things take time. But she says that I am too smart not to be doing something constructive with my mind. She should know, she was my professor once. She also says that I could write anytime. She's right I suppose. But still, I'm not really a teacher."

"You talk a lot," Klaus said, "A simple yes or no answer would have sufficed." He waited, for the moment when Stefan would get offended and walk away but it never came. The other man simply laughed as he bit into his sandwich.

"It's a bad habit of mine," he said, "I like to tell stories. When I can't tell them on paper I am usually running off at the mouth."

Klaus nodded. "I can see that," he said. There was another long silence before he next spoke. "You should find something that you like about this place," he advised, "If not it can suck the soul right out of you. Particularly if you don't wish to be here."

Stefan began to pick at his sandwich as he debated on whether or not he should mention the one angel he had found amidst the brick walls and teenage cynicism. "There has been one bright spot in my day," he said, leaning in and speaking lowly, "A student."

"A student?" Klaus asked, raising and eyebrow.

Stefan nodded. "She's very enthusiastic about literature," he said.

Klaus finally put his pencil down and seemed to eye Stefan with a new sort of fascination. "She?"

Again Stefan nodded. "Her name is Bonnie Bennett," he said, "Very bright and bubbly. Has one of those smiles that you can't help returning."

"I know who she is," Klaus said, going back to drawing, a small frown on his face. The girl had been in his class for the past two years. She had no talent for drawing or anything pertaining to art. Still she was chipper words and happy smiles. Always fluttering about with the other cheerleaders, reminding Klaus of a butterfly, pretty to look at but small and without much substance. "I don't like many people," Klaus said, looking up at Stefan again, "but you seem to be a nice enough person. If you are going to teach you should understand something. These students are like a pack of wild dogs most of the time. If you focus too hard on one, the others will blindside you with an attack. Don't let yourself be manipulated or taken advantage of. You are not here to make friends. You are here to teach."

"I've been friends with lots of teachers," Stefan said, his guilt over his thoughts of Bonnie prompting him to defend himself.

"And you said that your wife was your teacher," Klaus reminded him, "You grew friendly enough with her to marry her."

"That was different," Stefan said, "She saw something in me. Or rather I thought she did."

Klaus shrugged. "Whatever the case may be," he said, "Gray areas do not exist for students and teachers. Things are and have always been black and white."

Stefan looked around and was relieved to note that none of the other teachers were listening into their conversation. "If I cannot befriend the students and I must find something to like here," Stefan said, "Maybe I'll just befriend you instead." Stefan noted when Klaus, stiffened a moment, but he didn't say anything. "Would you mind if I ate lunch with you tomorrow?" Stefan smiled.

As Klaus looked up at him, Stefan saw something akin to apprehension in his eyes. "If you wish," he said, after a moment.

Stefan nodded as took another bite of his sandwich. Even though Klaus had advised him to be careful, he was already planning on how he would thank Bonnie for giving him advice.

**:::**

The day that Stefan had started teaching was one of those days when Bonnie didn't want to go home. Her father was out of town and her mother was who knew where and Bonnie didn't like being in the house alone. Eating alone. Watching television alone. Having no one to say good night to.

She should have been used to it she supposed. However, one never really grew accustomed to loneliness. It was more of being able to feel it but knowing that there was nothing that could be done about it.

Instead of going home, she had come out to eat at Mystic Grill with her friends, but still she felt as if she wasn't there. Caroline Forbes was playing pool with Matt Donovan and she suspected that Tyler Lockwood and Matt's sister were fucking in the bathroom as they had been gone too long for anything else to be going on.

That left Bonnie alone at their table, picking at the French fries she had order, still eating alone in a crowd full of people. It wasn't as if she had no one. She had a thing with Tyler's uncle Mason. But Mason had never had any intention of making their thing public and they never really talked. They had sex everyone once in a while and that was it. And it happened mostly during times when Bonnie was too drunk to use her better judgment.

She was tired of him anyway. He wasn't what Bonnie wanted. She wanted to be someone's poetry. So wanted to be all that mattered. She wanted to be in love and not in lust. She wanted someone to look at her and actually see her. Actually want to get to know her. But it seemed that those things were reserve for girls like Caroline and even girls like Vicki Donovan. While, Tyler was as much of an asshole as his uncle, at least he took Vicky out in public. He knew things about her. He cared even though he pretended not to.

No one had ever felt the way about Bonnie that they seemed all too willing to feel about the people around her. She was sure that she would never feel that feeling and that was why she let people like Mason take advantage of her. That was why she did more for her friends than they ever did for her. That was why she never complained when her parents fought, or her father left town, or her mother came home so late at night it was almost the next morning.

She was complacent because loneliness was the alternative and she could not stand being alone.

The dark turn that her thoughts had taken, caused Bonnie to stand and leave the restaurant. She walked through the crowd and out the door not noticing where she was going. It was until she bumped into someone that she bothered to pay any really attention to what was in front of her. As she looked up she was surprised to see that she had run into Stefan Salvatore just as he was walking inside.

She smiled as she moved to walk around him. While he had been fun to tease earlier that day, she was in no mood to do so now. "Hey, Mr. Salvatore," she greeted, ready to be on her way as he nodded his head in greeting.

She had almost made it past him when he called out after her. "Bonnie," he said, "Is something wrong?"

Bonnie frowned as she turned back to him. She was good at hiding her emotions. Always had been. She prided herself on being hard to read. She never wanted anyone to be able to see how the neglect and solitude affected her. She was bright Bonnie. Reliable Bonnie. Sweet Bonnie. Dependable Bonnie. No one had been able to see through that. So for a moment she thought that she had misheard him. "I'm fine," she said.

"You sure?" Stefan pressed, his eyes boring into her in a way that made her squirm. He seemed as if he actually cared, as if he really wanted to know if she was alright and if not, the reason behind her troubles. "We could go for a walk," he offered, "Talk. If you want."

Bonnie frowned, shaking her head. It was an odd request, and she had been used and abandon too many times not to question his motives. "I don't think that would be appropriate, Mr. Salvatore," she said, "And besides, I'm kind of busy. I don't have time to go for a walk. No stopping by the woods for me. _The woods are lovely, dark and deep. But I have promises to keep. And miles to go before I sleep. And miles to go before I sleep_."

Stefan gave her an odd sort of smile. "Robert Frost," he whispered.

Bonnie laughed, shaking her head. "Nothing gets past you, Salvatore," she said. Bonnie had always read a lot. There wasn't much else to do with all the time she spent by herself. Normally people weren't amused when she quoted poems, plays, and books at them. She chalked it up to the subject that he taught and turned to leave once more. "See you later, Mr. Salvatore."

"Wait," Stefan protested, and so she did. She turned and waited. For the longest time he just stared at her. Gazed, perhaps was a better word. It was an odd thing to behold. Him staring, and nervously playing with the wedding band on his finger. "I was thinking about…," there was a pause, a clearing of the throat, and then, "I thought that maybe I could start a book club. Some kind of after school program. You seem to have a passion for the written word...and I thought maybe other students might as well. Do you think it would be something that people could get into?"

Bonnie looked at him a moment. Perhaps it was because he seemed to care whether or not she was alright. Or maybe it was because she was sure that when he looked at her, he actually saw her. Whatever the case, Bonnie felt something shift inside of her. Something moved out of herself and gravitated toward him. It was the weirdest thing she had ever felt and she knew that it was stupid. He wasn't Mason, who was the family fuck up with nothing to lose. He was a new teacher. He was married. He was a nice guy, whom everyone at school had liked right off. He wasn't someone she should be drawn to. And yet… "I have some pull," she said, "I'm a cheerleader. People like me. If I'm into it. People will be into it."

He nodded. "Good," he said.

There was silence. Not an uncomfortable silence. A silence that was not heavy, but was still tense just the same. "Goodbye, Mr. Salvatore," she said, again needing to break into the quiet.

"Goodbye, Bonnie," he answered.

Bonnie walked away then, telling herself that she wouldn't look back. However, when she made it to her car she did. She looked back and he was still there. Watching. Seeing her.

**:::**

That night Stefan lay awake in bed next to his wife, unable to sleep. It was an odd thing. He felt detached. Detached from his life. Detached from his wife. Detached from his reality. It seemed that the only thoughts that were keeping him grounded were the thoughts of Bonnie.

He should quit his job. He knew that that would be the smartest course of action. Eliminate the problem, before it became a problem.

Or perhaps he should spend time with her. This draw, this pull, this attraction. Whatever it was, it would dull in time. It would have to, wouldn't it? He only wanted to know more about her, because he knew nothing. He was only interested in her, because she was a mystery to him. Once he learned things, there would be nothing left to fixate on. Nothing left for him to wonder about. There would only be a girl, his student. She blend in with the rest of the students that wondered the halls, none of whom had caught his eye the way that she had.

Stefan stiffened as he felt his wife touch his arm. They had not eaten together. Had not gotten ready for bed together. Had not spent any time with one another all day. That was normally how it when with them. She always had a class to teach, a workshop to go to, a conference to speak at, and he would always see her long enough for her to ask him what it was he wanted to do with his life. For her to exercise her control over him. For her to make him feel small, like he was that wide eyed student again that was so taken in and beguiled by his professor. By her intelligence and her beauty. He had idolized her then. Thought that she knew everything there was to know about anything. He had learned since then that no one knew everything, it was just that Katherine thought that she did.

"Are you awake?" Katherine asked, and his first thought was to fake sleep. But he knew that she would be able to tell. She could always tell. She could always read him.

"Yeah," he whispered back and waited. Waited to see what it was that she wanted. They were never physical unless she initiated. They never talked unless she was the first to speak. Their entire relationship was on her terms. That had been fine in the beginning when he was young and in awe of her. But now he was growing into himself, becoming a different person. Now he wanted a voice, he just didn't know how to say so.

"How was your first day?" Katherine asked.

What was he to say?

_It was good. I met a girl that reminds me what it's like to be alive. She's a student. My student. She smells like vanilla and she smiles more than you. And….I made a friend. He is somber and sarcastic. He doesn't seem to talk to anyone or like anyone but I find him easier to approach than you. Easier to talk to than you. He thinks that I should stay away from the girl and I think so too. But I won't. Because her hair is the color of raven's feathers and she can quote Robert Frost without sounding pretentious. _

"Fine," he said aloud, "I did alright. The kids like me. I like the school."

"You see," Katherine said, her hand running down his arm and then back up again, "You should listen to me. Things are always better for you when you listen to me."

His mouth pinched shut and he tensed. There was a time that he had consulted her in everything and she was still able to exercise that control. He hated that she did it, as much as he hated that she let him.

Then a thought occurred to him. Something that he had mentioned to Bonnie. "I was thinking," he said, "Of maybe, starting a book club. Giving the students something to do after school."

There was a pause and Stefan knew that she was thinking. "Well," she said, "I usually get home late so it'll give you something to do too. I like the idea, and it might win you some points with the students."

"If you think that it's a good idea," Stefan said, as he smiled into the darkness. He wouldn't mind listening to his wife in this instance, he would not mind it at all.

**:::**

The next day Stefan ate lunch with Klaus again. This time the man actually ate with him. They were quiet. The teacher's lounge was empty. Stefan was in deep thought and Klaus noted that he was in deep thought nearly every moment since Klaus had met him. This did not surprise Klaus as most writers considered themselves to be deep thinkers.

"Nik," Stefan said after a moment, the frowned, and then continued, "May I call you Nik? It sounds better on the tongue than Klaus."

Klaus frowned as he picked over the linguini he had left over from dinner the night before. "My sister calls me Nik," he said, after a while. Not giving Stefan permission but not denying him either.

"Nik," Stefan, repeated. He waited until the man's blue eyes looked at him and he knew he had his full attention. "Have you ever resented someone, without knowing exactly why you resent them?"

"I have resented many people," Klaus answered, "I always know why." His tone was disinterested but he had a feeling that Stefan would persist in talking. He wished that he could ignore the man, but with Stefan's green eyes looking at him so imploringly and the frown lines marring his forehead, he could not bring himself to look away.

"I resent my wife," Stefan said, "I don't know why. Or maybe I know but I don't want to know."

"Do you make it a habit of telling your marital secrets to people within the first few days of knowing them?" Klaus' tone was mocking, but Stefan didn't blink.

"No," he shrugged, "but I find you easy to talk to. You're very straight forward. I like that."

Klaus frowned. There were people who had liked things about him before. It never lasted for long. "How are your classes going so far?" Klaus asked, changing the subject.

"Great," Stefan nodded, "I've even gotten permission to start an afterschool program. A book club of sorts. Bonnie…is helping me recruit members."

"The Bennett girl?" Klaus asked, raising an eyebrow at him, "Didn't mention her before?" Klaus already knew that he had. He had always had a good memory. Ever since he was young, he was able to remember things and to read people.

"She's a smart girl," Stefan said, "I just think that she could blossom with some help. Maybe she could even write one day, as much as she loves to read. I know you said there was not gray area in terms of teaching and you're right. The matter is black and white. I am simply a teacher who sees potential in his student. That's it. There isn't anything wrong with that. It's perfectly innocent."

"Things that are innocent don't usually need to be labelled as such," Klaus commented, as he took a sip form the mug of tea in front of him.

"You're the one who mentioned not getting too close to students," Stefan reminded him, "I just thought, since we're going to be friends, I might put your mind at ease."

Klaus looked at him for a long moment. His eyes seeming to ask a question that Stefan didn't understand. "Are we? Are we going to be friends, Stefan?"

Stefan nodded. "I think so," he said. A shadow passed over Klaus' face, making Stefan think that there was some truth in Bonnie's sentiment that the man was lonely.

"And so we will," Klaus said, after a moment. He nodded to himself as Stefan continued eating, hoping that he was successfully able to hide the vulnerability that was there just beneath the surface.


	3. An Intrusion: Tea for Two

**Title:** Notes on a Scandal

**Rating: **M

**Genre:** AU All Human

**Pairing(s):** Bonnie/Stefan, Klaus/Stefan, Bonnie/Klaus, Bonnie/Stefan/Klaus, Stefan/Katherine, Caroline/Matt, Tyler/Vicki, ect.

**Summary: **Schoolteacher Niklaus Mikaelson has led a solitary life until Stefan Salvatore, the new English teacher at Mystic Falls High School, befriends him and takes him on as a confidante. But as their relationship develops, so does another as Stefan an illicit begins an affair with an underage student, Bonnie Bennett. When the affair is discovered Klaus decides to write an account of the events in his friend's defense— through which it is revealed that his intentions with this "friend" go well beyond platonic friendship. Things become further complicated when Klaus' obsession extends to Bonnie during Stefan's trial.

**Warnings:** Infidelity, Sexual Content, Non-Canon, Polyamourous Relationships, OOC Behavior, etc.

_**Author's Note: Here is the snippet in Klaus' POV. I think this will be how I format this fic. A chapter or two of the things that went on prior to the trial and then Klaus interrupting and discussing things in real time. Anyway here goes nothing….**_

**An Intrusion: Tea for Two**

The first day of the trial went by as smoothly as one could hope. However, I don't expect it to continue to be so as when an educator beds his pupil, no matter the age, smooth is not really to be expected.

Though, I had come to think of the girl as Bonnie in my mind it was not until the third day of the trial that I was able to see the girl outside of the courtroom.

By then Stefan had already placed his not guilty plea and so the trial had turned from something that could be over rather quickly, to something that would be long and laborious to endure.

_Nik you must understand. Guilt implies that I have done something wrong. What wrong is there in falling in love? Why should I apologize for that? I can't show remorse when she is sitting right there behind me, braving all of that ridicule. Did you see her there? So calm. So brave. So perfect._

I am unsure how he thinks that I am unable to see her. I have not suddenly gone blind and she has sat herself next to me every day of the trial thus far. She sees me as safe. A fact that I find to be ironic as in my past dealings with others I have been labeled such things as "intense" and "fixated". Neither of which is true of course. It is just that some people do not take well to being well looked after, well cared for. Not like Stefan who takes after it very well.

_I don't know what I would do without you. You are good friend. A rare find._

Though, I would appreciate Stefan's sentiments much more without the flowery language I have to say that I agree with them. Who else would brave this at his side? Who else would learn the small details that make him up to insure that he does not cease to function? Bonnie at the least seems to try, for which I must rather grudgingly pay her the smallest amount of respect. However, her methods are a bit idiotic.

You see, the night of the third day of the trial the nymph (that is what I have taken to calling her when I am not calling her sprite) decided to sneak out of her humble abode and over to ours.

_He isn't sleeping_, she said by way of explanation when I opened the door to find her standing in the rain, _with me here he'll sleep._

She was wearing a hooded sweatshirt and a baseball cap as if it were some sort of disguise. Ridiculous, the girl is. I wanted to ask her how she expected to get him to sleep. Faith, trust, and pixie dust; I supposed. But instead of inquiring I simply stepped aside and allowed her to enter.

Stefan was pleased to see her of course. Not thinking at all of the consequences of her being there. They embraced immediately. Kissed. Touched.

For Stefan the act of touch is a sort of art form. Something he has mastered because he has the habit of being overly affectionate. The sprite is starved for affection it seems so in that way they are quite the pair. Quite the idiotic pair.

When Stefan touch her, he was careful to caress any expanse of exposed skin. Careful movement of lips and fingers. Kisses fluttering down her neck like the wings of little birds. Open and worshipful, in the most disdain for of ways. It was fascinating to watch, even as I wanted to much to look away.

And she, the sprite, clung to him. Gripped him so tightly that I could see the indents of her nails in his arm, when he hands moved to the back of his neck. One would think that she had never been touched. That she had been left in her crib as a child and had spent all of her seventeen years waiting to be picked up and held.

He immediately used the dampness of her clothing as an excuse to get her out of them. It did not surprise me as I was aware of the sexual nature of their relationship. Still I had to wonder at how comfortable they felt to touch and kiss in front of me. It was a wonder they did not get caught sooner, if this was their attitude toward public physical intimacy.

She did get him to sleep however, for which I was grateful. They had gone into his room, to get her dry clothes he had said, though I had no doubt they were up to the same thing that got Stefan arrested in the first place.

I attempted to read a book as the hours passed. Attempted to ignore the faint sounds that could still be heard, from the living room down stairs. Attempted to concentrate and keep myself from going upstairs to listen to the soft declarations of love that Stefan always said would come after they parted. I managed to get through a whole five pages some six hours later when the sprite skipped down stairs.

_He's sleeping_, she informed me, _though he will soon wake if I don't go back upstairs. He always knows when I leave him, you see. He feels it when I am not next to him, almost the moment I'm no longer there._

"If that is the case," I inquired, "Then why are you down here?"

She shifted, looking entirely too small in the button down pin stripped top to the pajama set that I had purchased Stefan for Christmas.

_I wanted to talk to you_, she said, her tone speaking as if it were the most obvious thing in the world.

And so we went into the kitchen and sat at the table and Bonnie talked. And talked. And talked at length.

I have come to find that Bonnie is an odd thing. An extremely odd thing. She has an exceeding amount of intelligence and uses none of it. She is blindingly loyal, yet outside of Stefan she wastes it on worthless people. She is very bright. Not as in smart (though as I said she is intelligent). She is bright like one of those irksome florescent lights in a hospital. I cannot help but wince and look away when she smiles at me. Stefan finds her smile beguiling. To me it is unnerving.

Still I managed to hide my discomfort as we sat together across from each other our knees touching rather uncomfortably under the table. Or rather she talked. I listened. She didn't really say much of anything. She has the habit of talking around things so one has to guess her meaning. For example I offered to get her a cup of coffee to which she replied, "I don't drink coffee." It took me another five minutes to get her to tell me what it was she actually wished to drink. Tea.

I prefer tea myself, but her preference of it to me seemed rather juvenile. Still I managed to get tea for us both. As I took my place across from her she began to speak of her parents in very vague terms.

_They are good people. My parents. People doubt that… but they are. Then again I don't know them very well. But they are still good people. What I did…what happened had nothing to do with them_.

How difficult would it have been for her to say that her parents were neglectful? That she loved them but did not like them very much. For that was essentially what she was saying. Bonnie's vagueness made me miss Stefan's bluntness. After a while I couldn't stomach it any longer and finally asked, "Have you ever in your life said anything outright?"

I thought that she would be offended. That her blinding light would flicker. It did not. She smiled and shrugged as she clutched her cup. She seemed to think on it even so.

_When I told Stefan I loved him for the first time I was very blunt. I just kind of blurted it out. And there was the time….when he first arrived…that I suggested he be friends with you. You seemed lonely, I told him. I guess he took my advice. _

What does the girl know about loneliness? She could not possibly know. She is barely seventeen. And yet she has it in her to declare me lonely.

As I said, before Stefan it was fifteen years since I had considered anyone to be true friend. The last person. He was in many ways Stefan's antithesis. Very confident. Very charming. Quick wit. Silver tongue. He saw me as a mentor of sorts…I suppose. Things were well between us, until he took up with my sister. After that things became rather strained.

Marcellus his name was. Marcellus Gerard. It was said that we were too close. Far too close. I suppose that we were, because when we weren't close anymore I felt it more than anything I have ever felt. That is what true loneliness is. The feeling of not having something that you once possessed. That is something a high school girl could never understand.

Perhaps that is why I responded in the way that I did. Usually I am much more controlled. But something in the way that she presumed to know me put me on edge. "I do not like you very much," I told her, "Not at all in fact."

She surprised me by laughing. She did not seem at all offended in fact. She remained bright. Infuriatingly bright. "Is that amusing to you?" I asked.

_Was it not supposed to be? Was I meant fall apart or burst into tears? It's obvious I hit a nerve. You're funny. Stefan never said that you were funny. You don't mean to be. But you are. _

She doesn't mean to be a nuisance but she is. A little pixie nuisance with too small a nose and too crooked a mouth.

"Why would you tell Stefan to be friends with me?" I asked, after a moment.

She took a sip from her cup and sighed. She seemed to be debating with herself over whether she should answer. She was not like Stefan who spilled his darkest secrets on whim.

_I will be blunt. Since you demand it. As I said before, I knew you were lonely. I used to watch you sometimes. I had a crush on you for a while before Stefan came, you see. I have this thing about older men. When Stefan came I had just ended this thing with Tyler Lockwood's uncle Mason. I had thought it would be fun to tease him at first but then…Stefan is different. Different than anyone I have ever been with. _

An odd thing she was. A bright little nymph with a dark little past. A past full of older men and daddy issues.

"How was Stefan different than the others?" I asked, "What was it that made him so special?" Special enough for her to uproot his life.

_Most people when they look at me I feel like they don't see me. I'm invisible to my parents. My friends can only see me as good reliable Bonnie. And Mason saw me as an easy lay. Stefan is the only person who ever looked at me as if I mattered. _

It was something so simple and so layered. That was what she was. Both simple and layered. I could not bring myself to understand it.

We were silent and in the silence I wrote. She asked me what I was writing. "A fairy tale," I told her, "About a prince." Stefan. "A pixie." Bonnie. "And a troll." Myself.

She looked at me in a knowing way that made me feel translucent. "Does he live under a bridge? This troll?"

"Yes," I nodded, "One of his own making."

She frowned, the light dimming for the first time as she studied me. Then she stood saying that Stefan would wake up soon. Just as the words left her lips we heard movements from upstairs.

"I better get up there," she said, walking around the table.

She stopped next to my chair as she left. I looked up at her expectantly and she leaned down and kissed me on the cheek. I was disturbed that the act did not disturb me. Touching usually bothers me. But all I could think was that her lips were soft like Stefan said. Soft and warm. "I do not like to be touched," I told her just the same.

That maddening laugh was my only response. "Of course you don't," she said, as she left.

Yes, she is a peculiarity. But I must say, she seems to understand Stefan. She appears to make him happy. And well…the troll….the troll could sometimes use a little light under his bridge.

_**End Notes: So that is it for now. It might be a while before the next installment because I have cold and I am working on my other fics. Anyway, I really hope that you guys are still enjoying this. I am doing my best to keep things interesting. We shall see. **_


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